Copyright scotsman
Fire chiefs want to shut Marionville and transfer its fire engine to Newcraighall as part of a Scotland-wide review of fire services. The plans also include closing Musselburgh fire station and sending its appliance to a relocated Tranent station. But the proposal to close Marionville, in particular, has been met with fierce opposition from the local community and the Fire Brigades Union (FBU). They argue distance and congestion mean it will take longer for fire engines to reach the scene of a fire in the area, increasing the risk to public safety. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has acknowledged that closing Marionville would result in slower response times, which in a "worst case scenario" could mean an extra 4-6 minutes. But it says response times in the Marionville area would then be similar to those for lots of other areas in the city. The FBU and the residents also highlight the thousands of new homes planned for the area and the increasing activity at Leith docks, but the SFRS claims that nowadays new homes and workplaces do not necessarily represent an increase in fire risk. The results of the public consultation - which ended on September 16 - were released in response to a Freedom of Information request from the FBU. They show that across Scotland there were 3,673 survey responses, 844 of which were about the Marionville/Musselburgh proposal. Of these, 726 opposed the plans and just 72 supported them. FBU branch secretary David Strachan said: “As the numbers of respondents clearly shows, the public overwhelmingly do not support the proposal to close Marionville fire station. “The SFRS, and in particular the Fire Board, must take proper cognisance of the strength of public opposition and reject the proposal. They have a duty to serve the people of Scotland, as firefighters do every day and their duty is to prevent this proposal from proceeding.” Andy Watt, Deputy Chief Officer of the SFRS, acknowledged the majority of responses on the Marionville/Musselburgh plan recorded opposition to the proposal. He said: “The purpose of public consultation is to identify if there are any issues we have failed to consider in developing the options for change. “Feedback from the public consultation is very important and we are reviewing all the comments which have been shared with us. “This feedback will now be assessed along with all other supporting evidence in relation to the change options and recommendations will be presented to the SFRS Board in December.” Don’t miss out on the Capital’s biggest stories with our daily newsletter, which highlights the latest news. From breaking news to crime, business, local politics, sport and more.
